Contents

Following defeat at the Siege of Kumamoto Castle and in other battles in central Kyūshū, the surviving remnants of the samurai forces loyal to Saigō Takamori fled back to Satsuma, seizing the hill of Shiroyama overlooking Kagoshima on 1 September 1877.

Imperial army troops under the command of General Yamagata Aritomo and marines under the command of Admiral Kawamura Sumiyoshi began arriving soon after, and the rebels were surrounded. After combat losses and defections, Saigō had only about 500 samurai remaining of a force of over 20,000 which had besieged the government garrison in the city of Kumamoto only six weeks earlier.

With 30,000 troops,[2] Yamagata greatly outnumbered Saigō. Having been outfought and outmaneuvered so often in the past, however, Yamagata was determined to leave nothing to chance. The imperial troops spent several days constructing an elaborate system of ditches, walls and obstacles to prevent another breakout. The five government warships in Kagoshima harbor added their firepower to Yamagata's artillery, and began to systematically reduce the rebel positions, firing more than 7,000 shells.

Saigō defended his position with limited musket support, and no cannon. Saigō's force was reduced to melting down metal statuettes that local civilians smuggled in, and casting the metal into bullets. Medical supplies consisted of one carpenter's saw for amputations and a few rags for bandages. Yamagata sent a letter to Saigō, which entreated him to surrender, but bushido honor would not allow Saigō to do so.[1]

Yamagata's battle plan was to assault Saigo's position from all sides at once. Units were forbidden to assist one another without express permission. If a unit retreated with enemy troops in pursuit, the neighboring units were to fire into the area indiscriminately, killing their own men if necessary to prevent Saigō from escaping.[1]

Following an intensive artillery bombardment on the night of 24 September, imperial forces stormed the mountain in the early morning hours. The samurai, under heavy fire, charged the lines of the imperial army, which had not been trained for close-quarter sword fighting. In just a few minutes, the once organized line turned into disarray. Highly skilled samuraiswordsmanship prevailed against an army with very little traditional training. For a short time, Saigō's lines held, but was forced back due to weight of numbers. By 6 a.m., only 40 rebels remained alive. Saigō was wounded in the femoral artery and stomach. Losing blood rapidly, he asked to find a suitable spot to die. One of his most loyal followers, Beppu Shinsuke, carried him further down the hill on his shoulders. Legend says that Beppu acted as kaishakunin and aided Saigō in committing seppuku before he could be captured.[3] However, other evidence contradicts this, stating that Saigō in fact died of the bullet wound and then had his head cut off by Beppu in order to preserve his dignity.[1]

After Saigo's death, Beppu and the last of the "ex-samurai" drew their swords and plunged downhill toward the Imperial positions and to their deaths. With these deaths, the Satsuma rebellion came to an end.

Saigo with the last remnants of the Satsuma army, leads a desperate suicide charge.